‘How to Get to Heaven From Belfast’ Ending Explained: Well, That Was Weird

Netflix’s newest Lisa McGee series, How To Get To Heaven From Belfast, is an off-kilter dark comedy thriller that is a great, eminently binge-able time. While the dream-like framing suggested weird antics to come, I didn’t anticipate the twists and turns the mystery would take. This season ends with a definitive resolution, but the show was so fun that it simply cries out for another.

By the end of the first episode, viewers learn that not only is the body in the casket not Greta, but that she’s alive. The mystery body is that of Jodie, Greta’s long-lost sister. As young girls, they were raised in a cult called Heaven’s Veil, that believed there were places on earth where the veil between the material world and the spiritual world was thinner. The girls were mercilessly abused by their mother and prayed repeatedly for God to save them. When God did not intercede, the girls snapped and burned down the cult’s church, without realizing there were people inside.

This horrible event had them packed up and sent to an abusive psychologist who only furthered their trauma. Years later, when Greta was at school, a broke and desperate Jodie approached her about talking to an investigative journalist looking into the Heaven’s Veil tragedy. When Greta and Jodie met with the journalist, Greta refused to confess, and he attacked her. Jodie stabbed him to defend her sister. Greta sent Jodie away and concocted a story with Dara, Saoirse, and Robyn about being attacked by a sexual predator.

Later, when Greta was married with a daughter, Jodie reappeared with fresh intentions to air out their secrets. The two got into a scuffle at the top of the stairs and Greta accidentally pushed Jodie down the stairs, killing her. Margo and Owen helped Greta fake her death and disappear with the aid of the Evaporation Society, a colorful organization that helped women disappear when they need to. Society members Feeney and Booker spirited Greta away.

Eventually Greta developed doubts, and decided to run back to Heaven’s Veil to confront her past. The Society pursued her because any that break protocol must be killed to keep their network secret. Robyn, Dara, and Saoirse find Greta at Heaven’s Veil where Greta confesses everything. Feeney and Booker approach and give Greta three new passports so that she can live a new life with her husband and daughter. The two agents have decided the Society is corrupt and they will remake it in their vision.

Suffice to say that this was a wild tale with some unexpected developments. The cult aspect reminded me of Wayward Pines at times, but How to Get to Heaven From Belfast executed their story much more successfully. The sarcastic dialogue, threads of melancholy, and the feverish, woozy presentation made the series a great oddball ride. A second season has not been announced, but the potential is definitely there. Even if Greta’s story has been resolved, the wonderfully weird world of How to Get to Heaven From Belfast would be worth returning to for another twisty thriller.